New To Lure Making- Inline Spinners

[BQ22]

Hello all. I am new to the forum and have some questions about these inline spinners. I have been tying flies for some years now, and want to branch out and figured these would be good to start with. I do have a few questions though....

 

1. I see there are different diameters of wire when going to select some. Is there a one size fits all here? I am looking for trout and small bass sized lures.

 

2. The next question has to do with the clevis. Given the type of lures I am looking for what size or sizes should I start with? 2's and 4's..... ? I'm just making stuff up at this point.

 

3. Now for blade sizes. What is a good range to get to start with? I am thinking 2,3,4...5? What say you guys?

 

I think that will do it for now. I want to place one order for all the components at once and end up with a good variety of materials to make a range of sizes. What are some do's and don'ts to keep in mind when beginning?  Any advise on where to begin would be much appreciated.

[BLT]

I think you may be asking to general of a question. Are you looking for trout spinners, or Muskie?  Makes a big difference.

[BQ22]

As stated in my somewhat lengthy question, I am looking for trout and small bass type spinners.

[LimpNoodle]

1.  Buy a Twistech

 

2.  What commercial spinners do you use?  Brand, style and weight.

[toadfrog]

1 .035 wire is general

 

2 type 0ff clevis is sort of a personal choice . I prefer a folded clevis but sometimes they are tight trying to slip on the blade . 2' and 4's will get you from trout size to bass range .

3 So much depends on how much hardware you put on to get your weight it could mean a upping a blade size . you can't ever have to many blade sizes . 2-3-4- ect. will also get you in your fish range . Take a look at the inline blades no clevis needed . Also don't put a plastic bead under your clevis or inline blade . They can wear and snag up the blade or just plain break .

4 Any of the wire bender twister tools pro models are good even the Cabela's old style will work . Just be sure whatever you buy is an all in one tool . That also is a matter of choice and what you are comfortable with . Nearly all the makers have a tutorial video that might help you decide .

[BQ22]

Im not too stuck on a certain brand.

 

Thanks toad!

[LimpNoodle]

I've used every tool on the market.  The Twistech is the best available.  I prefer it over the much more expensive Hagen.  

 

I have six different styles of blades, in sizes from 0 to 8 for building spinners.  

 

One thing you haven't covered is spinner bodies.  Are you going to use lead?  Brass?  What weights?

 

I prefer to build my smaller spinners on .026 wire.  I only go to .035 for spinners for larger fish, salmon, steelhead, hybrid bass, stripers.  I also use .031 wire for mid sized spinners.

 

I have several sizes of clevises.  You should match clevis size to blade size.  Too small or too large a clevis can hinder blade movement.

 

If there are commercial spinners you use and want to emulate tell us what those spinners are and we can give you more detailed info.

[BQ22]

Sooooo I just placed my first order. I went with 0.031 wire, size 2 and 4 clevis, size 2,3 and 4 French blades in various colors and a few hundred beads. I figure for the body, I'd use some lead wire and dress it with chenille or dubbing for now. I hope this works.

I'm not buying a twistech type device yet. Need to not break the bank all at once.

I really don't prefer one spinner bait brand over the next. I am doing it more for fun really. I have been tying flies for a while and wanted to branch into lures. Figured this would be my first stop.

What blades are your go to?

[LimpNoodle]

I actually like Cascade/Olympic blades for spinners.  Lots of thump.  Second choice would be a good quality french blade.  I'm particular about who I purchase my blades from as they are not all equal.  

[smalljaw]

My only experience with wire formers are the little blue bender and the Hagens and the Hagens works for in-line spinners. I make regular safety pin type bass spinnerbaits mostly, I've been making them for years but the last couple of years I've been making in-line for smallmouth and trout. I used .024 for trout spinners in 1/16oz and 1/8oz and I used .031 for bass spinners 1/8oz to 1/4oz. For blades I have used all different kinds but I like the size 2 sonic in-line blades for the smaller trout spinners, and a size 3 sonic blade for the 1/8oz bass spinners and a size 3 French blade for the 1/4oz bass spinners. The thing you have to realize when it comes to spinner blades is that each type have a different size chart, a size 3 French blade is too large for my 1/8oz bass spinners but a size 3 in the sonic blade works well on the 1/8oz but on the smaller wire I use for trout spinners, the size 2 is the one to use. For bodies, you can get the small brass lure bodies, Barlows Tackle has them listed in weights which makes it easy when starting out to know what size you need. If you are going to use any other blade than the sonic you need to use a clevis, if you use the easy spin or stirrup clevis, you will use a size 2 which should work with most of your blades except really tiny ones, and if you use the folded clevis, a size 4 will be what you want.

[BLT]

As stated in my somewhat lengthy question, I am looking for trout and small bass type spinners.

Sorry, re read it and missed that!

 

I am interested in these answers myself. After making mostly saltwater stuff for 9 years to sell, want to get into inline spinners for my own use.

Edited April 20, 2016 by BLT

[scrubs]

Look at Janns Netcraft for some sizing charts and instructions. 

 

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/content/make_fishing_lures.htm

 

For trout I mainly use French blades in size 0, 1, 2 & 3. The finished weights on the Janns sheet are a good guide. .024 is plenty for trout. Silver with a little orange or red prism tape has been killer for me.

 

For SM bass I use 2  & 3 size blades and they are great for river SM. I've caught river Pike, Catfish and SM on these.

 

Also fingernail polish on bullet weights makes cheap bodies.

 

bill

Edited May 15, 2016 by scrubs

[LimpNoodle]

Look at Janns Netcraft for some sizing charts and instructions. 

 

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/content/make_fishing_lures.htm

 

For trout I mainly use French blades in size 0, 1, 2 & 3. The finished weights on the Janns sheet are a good guide. .024 is plenty for trout. Silver with a little orange or red prism tape has been killer for me.

 

For SM bass I use 2  & 3 size blades and they are great for river SM. I've caught river Pike, Catfish and SM on these.

 

Also fingernail polish on bullet weights makes cheap bodies.

 

bill

 

If you can throw a .024 ounce lure you have to be using a fly rod.  That's 24 thousandths.

[scrubs]

Sorry, I meant .024 wire. Weights as per the Jann's link.

 

BTW, I throw jigs of 1/64 (.015) and 1/50 (.020) oz on UL.

 

bill

[Chuck Young]

I know i could throw .024 in one of two ways: 1) using fly casting techniques with mono, or 2) by throwing the rod, reel and jig over the side of the boat.

Edited May 18, 2016 by Chuck Young

[Go Barbless]

What is a good way to remove sharp wire ta- ends on the wire wraps of my home-made in-line spinners.

I am using .041 and .051 wire.  I'd like to get a nice smooth tag end.

[Apdriver]

On 12/27/2020 at 5:40 PM, Go Barbless said:

What is a good way to remove sharp wire ta- ends on the wire wraps of my home-made in-line spinners.

I am using .041 and .051 wire.  I'd like to get a nice smooth tag end.

On the Hagens commercial wire former you can usually get a smooth transition but if I had a homemade twister and needed to smooth that tag end, I would use a dremel and a cutoff wheel.

[toadfrog]

3 hours ago, Apdriver said:

On the Hagens commercial wire former you can usually get a smooth transition but if I had a homemade twister and needed to smooth that tag end, I would use a dremel and a cutoff wheel.

Make sure you secure that wire before you try to smooth the tag end. I let one get away from me and it went into my hand. Stayed sore for a month.

[JD_mudbug]

I get smooth wire tags end by over-wrapping a bit, pulling the tag end back around a bit to clip it as close as I can with side cutters (or a mini-bolt cutter for .051 wire), hitting the cut end with a file to clean off any burrs, and then squashing the tiny tag end down with needle nose pliers. The overwrapping gives it that pre-bend for the squash down.